Scams are constantly popping up on social media sites. And when the offer is for a free product, who would want to pass that up?

So be careful, there's one circulating now that is extremely easy to fall for. It could end up costing you big time. Don't forget to share this article with friends and family so they know what to watch for as well.

Just click the share button on the left side of the page to post this to Facebook, they'll be glad that you did.

What's the latest social media scam making the rounds?

I'm sure that you've heard about Apple's newest iPhone models. The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are already available and the iPhone X will be out soon.

That's the good news. The bad news is how expensive they are. The iPhone X with 256GB of storage costs nearly $1,200. Yikes!

This is where scammers come in to play. Fraudsters are posting fake ads on social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, Google+, and YouTube.

They claim to offer free iPhones for completing simple tasks such as clicking a particular link, following a profile or liking and sharing a post. Many people are falling for these scams in the hopes of scoring one of the shiny new iPhones. Don't be one of them.

If you click on any of these links you're headed for trouble. Many of the links are malicious and will infect your gadget with malware.

Others are just elaborate like-farming scams, hoping to generate tons of likes and shares.

Based on the way Facebook works, the more likes and shares a post has, the more likely it is to show up in people's News Feeds. This gives the scammer more viewers for posts that trick people out of information or send them to malicious downloads.

Here's an example of a fraudulent ad found on Facebook:

Image: Example of scam Facebook page offering free iPhone's.

Scams like these are tricking too many people. That's why it's important to follow these guidelines for online safety:

Be cautious with links

Do not follow links in unsolicited emails, text messages, or websites claiming to offer free iPhones. It could be a phishing attack.

Cybercriminals target heavily populated social media sites to find new victims. They create fraudulent ads and posts with malicious links that could infect your device with malware, or ransomware. That's why you need to be able to recognize a phishing attack.

One thing to watch for with phishing attacks are typos, criminals are typically careless with spelling and grammar. If you receive an email or see a post from a reputable company, it should not contain typos.

Have strong security software

Make sure you're using strong antivirus software on all of your gadgets. And keep it and your operating system up-to-date for the best protection. This is the best way to keep your device from being infected with malware.

Set up two-factor authentication

Two-factor authentication, also known as two-step verification, means that to log in to your account, you need two ways to prove you are who you say you are. It's like the DMV or bank asking for two forms of ID.